She blinked up at him, staring into his eyes with a sharp, intense focus, as if she knew there was more… something important he wasn’t telling her. Taking a receipt from his pocket, Razl reached around her, into the truck, and grabbed a pen from the center console, then handed them to her. “Give me your mobile number.”
“What for?” she asked with a heavy dose of suspicion.
Tourmaline Smart needed to have her little backside blistered.And Razl was tempted to do it himself, just as soon as he managed to find her. As he pulled into the parking lot of the Heaven and Hell strip club late the following afternoon, he didn’t think he’d ever been so furious. There’d been an odd ache in his chest just moments before, when he’d driven past the Travelodge without spotting Tourmaline’s bus—which had been delivered to the hotel early that morning—in the
“Yeah, I know,” the Runner murmured. “It sucks. All I can figure is that they have some kind of joint operation going on down there. The Donovans are obviously the brains and the money, the Whiteclaw most likely the hired muscle. And seeing as how they’re all a bunch of assholes, it’s not a comforting combination.”“No shit,” Razl grunted. “Especially with them both so close to our land.” The Silvercrest were still in a highly vulnerable position, thanks to his father’s bullshit, and it freaked the h
Though she looked terrified, she managed to place one shaking hand on his shoulder, understanding the need to put on an act for anyone who might be watching them.“She’s in a room in the back of the club. If you go to the men’s restroom, there’s a door at the end of the hallway, on the right. Go through it, into another hallway, and then use the first door on the left. That’s where you’ll find her.” Her throat worked as she swallowed. “I don’t know what it was, but Curtis and the others gave her something that k
Pulling her into a sitting position, he propped her against the back of the sofa. “Tourmaline, I need you to wake up.” Her head lolled to the side, and he gave her a little shake. “Come on and open those blue eyes for me. Right now.”She made her first sound, a sleepy, muted little groan that reminded him of a child, and he shook her again.
“I need you to stay quiet now,” he warned her, heading back across the room and using the arm under her legs to open the door. He took a deep breath, but couldn’t scent anything or anyone in the hallway. Carrying her out of the room, Razl glanced right then left, trying to decide which direction they should go in. His gut instinct told him to head away from the muted, raucous blast of music coming from the main room of the club, so he turned left. He could only assume that the hidden exits Maggie had mentioned would be located in the building’s smaller outer rooms, like a private bathroom or a storage closet, where
Blinking her gritty eyes, Tourmaline tried to focus her wavering gaze, but it wasn’t easy. Making it onto her hands and knees, she crawled a few steps forward, until she was able to peek around the edge of the alcove.Holy…crap.She blinked again, unable to believe what she was seeing.
Tourmaline knew she should say thank-you. Be nice to him.But with the way she was hanging over his shoulder, she couldn’t stop staring at his muscular backside long enough to put any words together, fairly certain that drool was collecting in the corners of her mouth. Wow.
She smiled, relieved to see that he was okay, even though she was finding it difficult to keep her thoughts straight. One moment everything made sense with perfect clarity, and in the next, she couldn’t remember what they were doing there…or why she was finding it so difficult to concentrate.“Razl,” she said, her voice coming out as little more than a whisper. But he heard the scratchy sound, his head instantly lifting, hooded gray gaze locking with hers. “Are you okay?”